Introduction:
A brief about me: A local of the Washington DC metropolitan area, I provide crowds up and down the east coast with grooving foot-stompers, classic down home blues, jazzy jams, up-beat rockers, funky melodies, and heartfelt original tunes. My job is to lead my ensemble of seasoned musicians, engage audiences with bitchin harmonica, and energetic showmanship… I love my job and am good at what I do.
“To play the blues, you really have to commit yourself to the tradition and heritage of the music. Connor is doing just that.” Music Promoter Sydney Arzt.
Influences:
The catalyst to start me down the path of blues harmonica and musicianship was the character of Little Walter in the feature film Cadillac Records which is the story of the most influential blues label of all time, Chess Records. This film along with my father, an enthusiastic blues fan himself, helped introduce me to the swagger of blues harp and the soul-wrenching records of Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, Little Walter, and Etta James.
As a lifelong fan, I draw considerable influence from the Rolling Stones who share an equal amount of responsibility in driving me to pick up the harp as the classic blues pioneers I listed earlier. Playing along with tunes like “Midnight Rambler”, “You Got To Move”, and “Miss You” gave me the confidence to continue to pursue the instrument. In that spectrum of rock and roll music, I have a lot of fun listening to and copping licks from cats like Hendrix, Phish, CSNY, Dr. John, Little Feat, Lou Reed, The Animals, Roxy Music, and of course The Grateful Dead.
In the world of harmonica, there are the innovators such as Little Walter, Junior Wells, Lee Oskar whom I steal licks from, and then there are the contemporary players. Some of the harmonica folks who still tour regularly who I learn from and listen to are players like Jason Ricci, Mark Hummel, and John Nemeth. I hope one day I can be among the names of the greats in the mind of a future young player like myself who is keeping the blues alive.